Police: Contractor paid $37,000, never did work on Freemansburg home

December 26, 2013|By Manuel Gamiz Jr., Of The Morning Call

A contractor was charged Tuesday with collecting $37,000 to renovate a home in Freemansburg and never doing the work.

Jerry D. Allen, 41, of Easton was hired in November 2011 to renovate a house in the 200 block of Juniata Street, according to court records. Property owner Stuart Johnson, who lives elsewhere, said he sent Allen four checks totaling $37,000, police said.

Allen stopped returning Johnson's phone calls around April 2012, so Johnson had someone check on the progress of the work and found that nothing had been done, according to court records.

Freemansburg police spoke to Johnson in August, and he provided a copy of his agreement with Allen.

Allen, of the 2400 block of Front Street, was charged with home improvement fraud and theft by deception. He was arraigned by District Judge James Narlesky and sent to Northampton County Prison under $35,000 bail.